Half of UK consumers are baffled when it comes to buying ‘British’ and two-thirds (67%) want an official seal of approval to show products made in Britain, while half (52%) think British brands should bring manufacturing back to the UK, according to new research by leading UK cooker manufacturer Stoves.
Staggeringly, half (48%) of Brits surveyed* admitted confusion about which brands could still claim to be made in Britain, with international takeovers and moves towards Far Eastern production all contributing to an increasingly puzzled landscape.
Now in response, UK cooker manufacturer Stoves has teamed up with independent Made in Britain champions, BuyBritish.co.uk, to launch a campaign for increased transparency, asking for a standardised ‘Made In Britain’ marque to be used on British-made products.
With more than a third of people questioned stating they would buy British if it was easier to identify authentic made in Britain products and 55% claiming that supporting UK manufacture and jobs is their main incentive to buy British, Stoves and BuyBritish.co.uk hope the marque will be adopted by the UK manufacturing industry as a whole.
The findings revealed that 36% of people claim to buy British whenever they can, but when probed about the Britishness of some of the UK’s most iconic consumer goods, it is clear that the public is holding on to out-of-date misconceptions as to what brands are still 100% British made.
40% think HP Sauce (Netherlands) is British-made while 43% think the same of Royal Doulton which although designed in the UK is now manufactured in the Far East. Almost a third (32%) rate Dyson as a truly British brand despite production now taking place in Malaysia and almost a quarter (23%) stand by Raleigh when in fact it shifted production to the Far East in 2003.
With 67% of people agreeing that truly British brands should carry a recognised kitemark, Stoves has drafted in the help of the UK’s design undergraduates to create a seal of approval to help consumers in their purchasing choices.
The results of the nationwide competition will be revealed in June 2011 and will see the winning student’s design displayed on Stoves products, marketing material, and website. It will also be available as a download for all UK manufactured brands, with Stoves and BuyBritish.co.uk hoping that businesses large and small will back the campaign.
Denver Hewlett, chief executive of Stoves, said: “There is clearly an appetite out there for made in Britain products but the confusion lies in identifying what products are manufactured in the UK. A standard industry marque would certainly help the public in their purchasing decisions and it is something we intend to use on all of our Made in Britain products as a result of this campaign.”
The campaign is being backed by Shaun Woodward, MP for St Helens the constituency where Stoves’ head office and factory is based. He said: “British manufacture is essential to our economy and has the potential to play a vital role in the UK’s economic recovery. It is fantastic to see a major company such as Stoves take the lead in launching a Made in Britain seal of approval on behalf of the country’s manufacturers. There is clear consumer demand for products and goods made in this country and this campaign will help make that purchasing decision even easier. The development of a Made in Britain seal of approval is an extremely worthwhile initiative and I am delighted to lend my support to this cause.”
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In 1887 the country celebrated Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, 50 years as Queen. One in four of the world’s population was a subject of the crown. William Gladstone was a prominent politician when William Turner started a business in Sheffield smelting and refining gold and silver. The company quickly expanded into rolling other metals and manufacturing cutlery. The majority of the company’s early production was supplied to other cutlers for finishing and sale under their own name. In essence, William Turner was the “cutlers’ cutler”.
